Processing Of English Applicative Constructions By Chinese EFL Learners

Language is the cornerstone of human cognition,and is unique in that it consists of a special cognitive system of syntactic rules and lexicon.The explorations of laws governing the operation of language mechanisms are the theme of extensive linguistic research,including the laws of language structures and the laws of language processing.Because of the mismatch between positions of arguments and thematic roles,English applicative constructions are non-core argument constructions at the syntax-semantics interface.By using English augmentative structures as an entry point,it is helpful to understand the laws of argument realization of lexical semantics as well as the nature of the syntax-semantics interface,while by using psycholinguistic online experimental methods,it is helpful to investigate the processing of linguistic constructions by second language(L2)learners.English applicative constructions represent argument augmentation constructions,in which the non-overt applicative(Appl)marker adds an ‘affected’ non-core argument to the verb.The covert Appl marker is treated as a verb that takes an ‘event’ argument semantically and a VP(verb phrase)complement syntactically;the indirect object is the semantic argument of the combination of the Appl head and the VP complement,and it bears a transfer of possession relation to the direct object.English applicative constructions resemble English double object constructions at the level of S-structure,but both differ at the level of D-structure.The current research on English applicative constructions adopts the applicative phrase analysis to analyze the differences between English applicative constructions and prepositional dative constructions at the level of D-structure.Nevertheless,it remains unknown how L2 learners process the non-core argument of English applicative constructions,whether there are differences between English applicative constructions and prepositional dative constructions in processing,and what factors might impact the processing of syntactic representations and semantic information.At the same time,English applicative constructions differ from Chinese applicative constructions in the aspects such as the direction of transfer of possession and the restriction on verb types.However,studies on the online processing of English applicative constructions by Chinese EFL(English as a foreign language)learners are scarce.It remains unclear whether the processing of English applicative constructions is difficult.Therefore,the study on the processing of English applicative constructions by Chinese EFL learners has great theoretical significance and empirical value.In light of these,the current dissertation uses self-paced reading,eye-tracking and event-related potential(ERP)to systematically investigate the real-time processing of English applicative constructions by Chinese EFL learners,with the hope of disclosing the processing mechanisms of such syntax-semantics interface constructions.In this dissertation,three research questions are addressed: 1)How do Chinese EFL learners process English applicative constructions? 2)What are the neurocognitive mechanisms of the processing of English applicative constructions by Chinese EFL learners? 3)How do English applicative constructions(i.e.,non-core ditransitive constructions)differ from prepositional dative constructions(i.e.,core ditransitive constructions)in processing? Contraposing these questions,three experiments were conducted,which respectively uses the self-paced reading technique,the eye-tracking technique and the ERP technique.Experiment 1 is a behavioral study,involving two experiments to investigate the effect of the verbal event type on the processing of English applicative constructions,and at the same time to compare the processing differences between English applicative constructions and prepositional dative constructions by Chinese EFL learners.The selfpaced reading experiment revealed differences in Chinese EFL learners’ processing of arguments in English applicative constructions and prepositional dative constructions,namely Chinese EFL learners had more difficulty in processing the applied argument of English applicative constructions than the core arguments in prepositional dative constructions,which verified the applicative phrase analysis from the perspective of generative grammar.As for the comprehension of English applicative constructions,the verbal event type and the first language(L1)transfer had a crucial influence on the comprehension of the transfer of possession relation between the indirect object and the direct object.Moreover,increasing L2 proficiency facilitated the processing of the applied argument of English applicative constructions.The grammaticality judgment experiment found differences in acquisition between English applicative constructions and prepositional dative constructions.Specifically,the judgment accuracy of English applicative constructions was lower relative to prepositional dative constructions,and the judgment time of English applicative constructions was longer than prepositional dative constructions.These suggested that Chinese EFL learners had more problems with English applicative constructions than prepositional dative constructions,namely non-core ditransitive constructions were more problematic relative to core ditransitive constructions in L2 acquisition.Additionally,different verbal event types resulted in differences in the processing of English applicative constructions,indicating that the different syntactic-semantic interfaces have different processing difficulties.This is consistent in part with the Interface Hypothesis.Experiment 2 is an eye-tracking study,recording and analyzing the eye-movement characteristics in the processing of English applicative constructions and prepositional dative constructions.It was found that the verbal event type influenced Chinese EFL learners’ cognitive processes of English ditransitive verbs.To be specific,in the early processing stage,this factor impacted Chinese EFL learners’ recognition of lexicalsemantic information about verbs.In contrast,in the late processing stage,this factor affected the integration of semantic and syntactic information of verbs.Additionally,English applicative constructions differed from prepositional dative constructions in Chinese’ EFL learners’ processing in early as well as late processing stages.The early processing is a reflection of the recognition of lexical semantic information.The early processing of the indirect object of English applicative constructions was quicker than the direct object of prepositional dative constructions,suggesting that the thematic role affected Chinese EFL learners’ early recognition of semantic information on arguments.By contrast,the late processing reflects the projection and mapping of syntactic and semantic information.The late processing of the indirect object of English applicative constructions was slower than the direct object of prepositional dative constructions,which indicated that they had problems with the projection and mapping of syntactic and semantic information on the indirect object(i.e.,the applied argument).Experiment 3 is an ERP study,recording and analyzing the ERP components in the reading of English applicative constructions and prepositional dative constructions under the correct condition,the semantic violation condition,the syntactic condition,and the combined violation condition.At the same time,it investigated the differences in the processing of different types of verbs by Chinese EFL learners,by manipulating verb-construction association strength.It was discovered that the different violation conditions of prepositional dative constructions induced not only P600 effects but also an N400 effect.By contrast,the different violation conditions of English applicative constructions only induced P600 effects.These indicated that Chinese EFL learners were more sensitive to the violations of English applicative constructions relative to prepositional dative constructions.In addition,for the correct condition,the indirect object of English applicative constructions evoked an N400 effect relative to the direct object of prepositional dative constructions.This result supports the applicative phrase analysis postulating that the applied argument of English applicative constructions is the semantic argument of the combination of applicative head and VP complement.In Experiment 3,the combined violation condition for English applicative constructions did not elicit an N400 effect relative to the correct condition,consistent with the IndoEuropean sentences under the combined violation condition that did not elicit an N400 effect.This suggests that the failure of syntactic processes impeded semantic processes during an early processing stage.Moreover,a larger positive-going ERP waveform was observed when comparing the combined violation condition to the syntactic violation condition for English applicative constructions.This suggests an interaction between syntactic processes and semantic processes during the late processing stage.Therefore,the findings were in favor of the three-stage neurocognitive model,namely during the processing of Indo-European sentences,syntactic processes precede semantic analysis during an early stage,but both interact during a late processing stage.In addition,ERP data suggested that verb-construction association strength had an important influence on the neurocognitive mechanisms in the processing English applicative constructions by Chinese EFL learners.Based on above experiments,the findings of the current dissertation are as follows:1)the different syntax-semantics interfaces resulted in different degrees of processing difficulty for Chinese EFL learners;2)during the processing of English applicative constructions,syntactic processes impeded semantic processes in an early processing stage,but both interacted in a late processing stage;3)Chinese EFL learners had more difficulty in processing English applicative constructions(i.e.,non-core ditransitive constructions)compared to prepositional dative constructions(i.e.,core ditransitive constructions).Based on the findings,the current dissertation put forward the Interface Heterogeneity Hypothesis.Complementary to the Interface Hypothesis,the hypothesis argues that due to the heterogeneity within the syntax-semantics interface constructions,L2 learners at developmental stages have different difficulty with the processing within the syntax-semantics interface constructions.The current dissertation has great theoretical significance and empirical values as follows: 1)it provides empirical evidence for the non-core thematic domain through a comprehensive investigation of the processing of English applicative constructions by Chinese EFL learners using online methods;2)by recording the neuropsychological processing of the syntax-semantics interface constructions,it provides visualized proof,thereby enriching the existing second language theories;3)the differences between English applicative constructions and prepositional dative constructions in argument processing verify the applicative phrase analysis,providing empirical evidence for the relation between argument structures of ditransitive constructions;4)the study on the neuropsychological processing of the syntax-semantics interface constructions might help to resolve the problem of comprehending the non-core constructions in language teaching,which can interpret the differences between core and non-core constructions more systematically,thereby providing guidance for TESL(i.e.,teaching English as a second language).